A Day With MLB 2K13

Every day my coworkers ask me how my MLB 2K13 is coming along. When I start talking about the glitches I'm finding, they often think I'm pulling their legs with preposterous, made-up stories. Since they're having such a hard time believing that a first baseman can get smacked in the face with a line drive so hard it almost goes into his brain, I've decided to record all of my games so they can see the comedy of errors unfold with their very own eyes.

Here are a handful of the strange things I saw playing MLB 2K13 for just four hours yesterday. Note: All of the teams that are not the Cubs or a Cubs Minor League affiliate are computer controlled.

The Line Drive to the Face

How does this even happen? Was he looking at a girl in the crowd? A kid on one of my Little League teams got smacked in the face just like this, only he was looking up at the clouds when the ball was hit.

Broken AI

After fielding the ball and letting his momentum stop, the fielder just stands there for a few seconds. A base runner sprints right by him. He could have applied the tag, or thrown to second to try to start a double play. Since he wasted so much time, his only play is the man at first.

Wrong Animation at the Wrong Time

I'm pretty sure this is assault. He just struck out and the game decided to give him his "oh darn" animation. It just happens the catcher was in the way.

Where is the Catcher Going?

He probably could have thrown the ball to second to get the lead runner. Instead, he ran to the mound for whatever reason and barely nailed the speedy Starlin Castro at first.

How Do I Get Back to First Base?

He started out strong and then...sigh...I have no idea what he's doing.

Catching the AI Thinking

You can see the AI stop thinking for a split second after the shortstop touches second base. What follows is a goofy sped up animation and a double play having no shot of being completed.

Pathing Problems

This isn't that big of a deal, but the third baseman should have gotten out of the way. The play wasn't affected by the collision.

Unturnable Double Play Turned

This one really bugs me. The shortstop should have had his back to first base on this play, which would have resulted in more time being taken to attempt a double play. After the ball magically phases through his back, he's in the proper position to turn two.

Get Out of the Way, Ump!

Again, the collision didn't affect the play, but how does this even happen?

You Should Get Glasses, Dude

This is my favorite clip so far. That second baseman was a good 12 feet away from that ball when he started his dive. He had no shot.

You Already Stepped on the Bag, Dummy

Here's another strange double play. The shortstop clearly stepped on the bag, but the AI decided to throw the ball to second.

Where is the First Baseman Going?

The first baseman is already leaving the bag before the ball is thrown. I have no idea what happened here.

Stuck on the Ump

Again this is no big deal, but after taking the lead in the game, I expected a better celebration than glitching out on the home plate umpire's leg.

You Caught Me...Or Did You?

Not only does this clip start with the ball clipping through the pitcher's glove, the fielder fully breaks after receiving the ball from the catcher. He has his eyes on Starlin Castro, but still tries to lay down a tag on a base runner that is clearly heading in the other direction. He also doesn't think about throwing it to first until Castro dives back in.

Not Safe

Starlin Castro's throw pulls Anthony Rizzo off of the base, but he's still in position to make the play. The base runner phases right through him and is called safe at first.